Aspiring to the Immortal Path

War wagons flew across the drab skies, lighting it up in flames.

These war wagons were sized on the basis of their master’s strength. The largest naturally belonged to the Scarlet Terra Ancestor. It had nine levels in total and was as big as a mountain, pulled along by nine Devilfire Dragons.

Second in size were the eight-level war wagons.

There were eight of these, each one owned by a devil chief.

At this moment, on the top floor of one of these eight-level war wagons, Witchbone was drinking wine in the main hall while squinting at the beauty before him.

Mist Banshee sat cross-legged across from him, her hands constantly forming signs as black energy poured out of the top of her head.

This black energy grew thicker and thicker, condensing into a powerful and wicked energy from which faint shrieking could be heard.

Witchbone nodded in satisfaction. “Your progress is faster than I imagined. It seems that you must have cultivated a top-class art before that is able to maximize the power of the Demon Spirit Pill. I was planning to grant you a demonic art, but it seems that it’s not necessary.”

Mist Banshee softly smiled. “Master, thank you for your generous affection. Mist Banshee will repay it even if she must have her body pulverized and bones crushed.”

Witchbone felt immense pleasure from being called “Master”, and he laughed, “I don’t want a beauty so that I could pulverize their body and crush their bones. I just want beauties to be soft and limp in my embrace!”

Mist Banshee lowered her head in shyness, which made her all the more alluring and made Witchbone want to immediately press her to the floor. But Mist Banshee had yet to reach Violet Palace, so Witchbone could only endure until she was ripe.

Suddenly, the war wagon came to a stop, as if it had run into something.

Witchbone released his Demonic Will and then explained, “We’ve discovered a spatial disturbance up ahead, causing us to suddenly stop. My beauty, is this the Crimson Luan Hidden Realm you spoke of?”

Mist Banshee gently replied, “This Mist Banshee was of too lowly status to ever get a chance to enter the Crimson Luan Hidden Realm. I only know that the hidden realm was around fifty thousand kilometers away from Skybrink Ridge. Mist Banshee does not know the exact location, so the Demon Lords will have to make their own judgment.”

Witchbone expanded his senses and said, “This place is around fifty thousand kilometers from Skybrink Ridge, has abnormal spatial disturbances, and there is still large amounts of demonic energy lingering in the air, so it should be the location of the hidden realm. Now we just need to find the way to open it.”

“Will Master not go to open it up?” Mist Banshee asked.

Witchbone shook his head and smiled. “I won’t be going. I’ll keep you company, my beauty, and quietly wait for everything to be over.”

Mist Banshee blushed and whispered, “Mist Banshee is overwhelmed by Master’s immense love, but I fear that it will draw rumors and gossip. Someone might claim that Mist Banshee is distracting Master from actual business. Moreover, there is still the ancestor above Master, and if you displease the ancestor…”

These words made Witchbone have second thoughts.

At this moment, a strange sound came from the center of the army. Witchbone said, “The ancestor is summoning me to discuss the matter of breaking into the realm. Dear Banshee, what you say makes sense. I should still go.”

He flew out of his war wagon to meet with the Scarlet Terra Ancestor.

Once he was gone, Mist Banshee’s expression began to change.

She rose and went to a corner of the tower and quietly chanted something. A few moments later, a tear was made in the fabric of space, and Tang Chuan emerged.

Tang Chuan bowed to Mist Banshee and grinned. “Big Sister Ice Phoenix is truly impressive. You have that devil chief wrapped around your finger.”

Mist Banshee was naturally Ice Phoenix.

Ice Phoenix’s face darkened. “You’re quite bold, daring to spy on a devil chief. Do you know how risky that is?”

Tang Chuan smugly said, “Why should I be afraid? While I can’t boast about anything else, my Void Stealth art is even praised by Father. Unless someone reaches his level of cultivation, they won’t be able to see through it.”

“The world is huge and full of capable people. Don’t underestimate the heroes of the cosmos,” Ice Phoenix snorted.

“I wouldn’t dare, wouldn’t dare. I already know the price of underestimating others. Isn’t it precisely because they underestimated you that you were able to sell them out?” Tang Chuan giggled.

“They just believe that I’m a demon and that a demon wouldn’t be used by humans. If they were attacking another demon army right now, then they wouldn’t trust me in the slightest.”

Yes, while Ice Phoenix hadn’t gone back to being a human, that didn’t mean that she couldn’t work with humans.

For hundreds of years as a demon, Ice Phoenix had been with Tang Jie.

Tang Jie hadn’t been able to save Ice Phoenix, but he had been able to establish a solid relationship with the demonized Ice Phoenix.

Most importantly, who said that he couldn’t be friends with a demon?

Ice Phoenix’s personality truly had changed a lot after becoming a demon, and she was now much more vicious and cunning.

But Tang Jie’s presence was like Sun Wukong’s golden headband, binding Ice Phoenix’s “evil”. She might be able to mess around with others and cause trouble, but she would never be able to commit true evil.

(TN: In Journey to the West, Sun Wukong wears a golden headband which can’t be removed. When a specific spell is chanted, the band will tighten and give Sun Wukong a terrible headache, which allows Tang Sanzang to control Sun Wukong.)

Regardless of what she thought, she never got the opportunity to act on those thoughts.

After several centuries, she gradually got used to it.

In these circumstances, a simple but effective plan took form: send Ice Phoenix out to lure the demon army into a trap.

Because Ice Phoenix was a demon, the Scarlet Terra Ancestor and his company had basically no chance of doubting her words.

Of course, this didn’t mean it was risk-free, particularly if Ice Phoenix’s words and Libido’s didn’t match. After all, Ice Phoenix had no idea what Libido had told Scarlet Terra.

Fortunately, she and Tang Jie had expected this and decided to simply claim to not know, which would match with her status.

Even so, the risk was still huge. If the demons got suspicious, Ice Phoenix would be executed.

But Ice Phoenix was willing to take this risk.

Because she was the one who had proposed the plan.

Tang Chuan smiled. “Big Sister is right. But no matter what, Big Sister is making a great contribution to humanity. Now that I think about it, it’s rather funny that it’s a demon and a ghost helping out humanity so much, curious, curious.”

“Cut the chatter. Did you bring what I asked for?” Ice Phoenix stuck out a hand.

“Of course, of course. It’s just that Father thinks this hastily-made plan of yours is too risky and wants you to reconsider.”

“Shut your mouth. I decide what I want to do. If Tang Jie isn’t willing to give it to me, do you think I can’t get it myself? Give it to me and then leave at once so that you don’t get caught.”

“Understood.” Tang Chuan reluctantly handed over a Mustard Seed Bag. “I’m going now. Big Sister, you have to be careful in the middle of the demons’ nest.”

Ice Phoenix took the Mustard Seed Bag and said, “Tell Tang Jie to not forget what he promised to me after this is done.”

“Of course not. Big Sister has spent so long with Father that you should understand what sort of person he is. Once this matter is over, Father will grant you your freedom. Not only that, he will help Big Sister gain a foundation in the Primordial Fog Domain!” After saying this, Tang Chuan leapt back into the void.

Once he was gone, Ice Phoenix opened the bag and checked the contents. For fear of being inspected, she hadn’t brought anything with her for this mission. But to her surprise, the devils didn’t subject her to any sort of search.

Ice Phoenix removed a small formation diagram from the Mustard Seed Bag. She spread it out on the floor, upon which it turned into a cloud and disappeared within the hall.

She then took out a small jade bottle and downed its contents.

Finally, Ice Phoenix took out a small golden sphere. On closer inspection, she found that it was made from Tang Jie’s golden grains.

Thinly smiling, she opened her mouth and swallowed the ball.

Once this was done, Ice Phoenix disposed of the Mustard Seed Bag and then quietly waited for Witchbone to return.

Not long afterward, Witchbone returned.

Ice Phoenix welcomed him with a smile. “Master, how did it go?”

Witchbone chuckled. “It all went smoothly. While the hidden realm is hidden very well, it is no match for the combined powers of me and Ancestor. We’ve already found the entrance, and it won’t be long before we break through. I’ve come back to prepare, and once the entrance is open, we’ll charge in!”

“Congratulations, Master,” Ice Phoenix said.

Witchbone happily accepted Ice Phoenix’s congratulations.

At this moment, Ice Phoenix began to emit an intense energy, and then she frowned and gripped her chest, letting out a scream as she fell to the floor.

Witchbone was startled. “My beauty!”

“Master, my body is very hot…” Ice Phoenix said with her eyes closed.

Anyone else might have thought that this was a seduction attempt by Ice Phoenix, but Witchbone immediately sensed that something was going wrong in Ice Phoenix’s body. All of her demonic energy was surging, and her Demonic Will was being released and withdrawn without rhyme or reason.

“This is…” After a brief pause, Witchbone realized what was going on. “Your demonic energy is going out of control. How could this be? Did something go wrong with the art you cultivated before… Yes, I see. Since you’ve become a demon, there must be some conflict with your original art, and then you grew stronger from the Demon Spirit Pill, which was too much for your art to handle, resulting in your demonic energy going out of control.”

Her body burning up and her face scrunched up in pain, Ice Phoenix said, “Am I going to die?”

She was deathly pale.

Witchbone’s heart winced. “No, you won’t die. How could you die when I’m here? Relax. I will help you ascend to Violet Palace. So long as you reach Violet Palace and link your will to the world, you will be able to take control of your body and bring the demonic energy back under control, turning a disaster into a blessing.”

Witchbone first went out of the hall and shouted, “No matter what happens, nobody is allowed in!”

He then returned and placed a hand on Ice Phoenix’s back, beginning to help her guide her energy so that she could advance.

Someone of Witchbone’s power shouldn’t have needed too much power to help Ice Phoenix ascend to Violet Palace.

But as he started, he found that this beauty’s body was like a bottomless hole, and no matter how much energy he poured, he simply couldn’t fill it in, let alone help her ascend to Violet Palace.

Witchbone was aghast. How could this be?

He then found that there was a small leak in Ice Phoenix’s body such that more than half of the energy Witchbone had sent in had leaked out. Moreover, the demonic energy within Ice Phoenix’s body had many impurities, explaining the pain Ice Phoenix was feeling.

These impurities had the strange attribute of going against the flow, trying to force their way into his body as he poured energy into Ice Phoenix.

But Witchbone didn’t mind this. With his undying body, he could remove any impurities.

The leakage problem was more serious. There was no time to resolve this problem now, as Ice Phoenix was still wracked by the pain from the demonic energy. Gritting his teeth, Witchbone decided to pour in more energy.

At this moment, there was a boom from outside. The Scarlet Terra Ancestor and the others had opened up the hidden realm and the army was going in, but Witchbone had no time for this. As the energy poured, Ice Phoenix’s body finally began to fill up with demonic energy, giving her the conditions to ascend to Violet Palace.

Was it finally going to work?